Day 5 - Pep Her Mill

Sunday January 8, 2005

Hotel: Change to Barbary Coast
Meals: Peppermill
Carloucci’s



This was our day to change hotels. Since the company would no longer be picking up the tab we were switching to the Barbary Coast – a place we had always wanted to stay. Trying to get everything in order and re-packed was a challenge. But we did it! I wanted to see the feeding of the penguins so I headed down at 8:30 am with DH to watch. Saw a bit and then moved on to check out the pool area – scouting for future trips. Wow there are soo many pools here. Sort of cool – as long as you can find the people you’re looking for. The cabana’s looked like they would be fun! Grabbed a muffin and went back to the room to eat since our next meal wouldn’t be for a few hours. After all this we go back to the room to get ready and move our stuff over. As it turns out we were able to check in early! That was great – gave us a chance to get set up and settle in. Then we made the trek from the BC to the Peppermill. Wow what a walk. It was a beautiful morning and we enjoyed the quietness of the streets. That was our first walk that far north down the strip on this trip. We never actually did go into the Wynn this trip. Next time I really want to check it out. So we made the never ending walk to the Peppermill and found our friends. I can’t believe the amount of food you get with your meal. Who can actually eat all this? Based on Hurricane Mikey’s recommendation DH had the Southern Fried Steak and Eggs for breakfast and I had the El Dorado Omelet. Both very good – but who can eat all this food!!!! We enjoyed out visit with our Las Vegas friends. They are great! It’s nice to get a local perspective and I think they enjoy seeing things from the tourist point of view. They were very surprised by how much we knew about Vegas. Hmm wonder if that could be a result of our Vegas obsession and all the talk boards. Crazy!!!
From there we went back to their house to see the changes they had made to their new house since our trip two years ago. The landscaping was just about finished – it is so nice to see things that are green in January! The had made an addition of their shed in the back – which could double as a mini house and a beautiful china cabinet which was part of their previous home. Sometimes it’s just nice to get off the strip and all the craziness.

We enjoyed a visit with them at their house and then decided to go to the Luxor where we had never been. We ended up in the Mandalay Bay parking garage, I had never been in such a large one before. Course we never have a car in Vegas… As we made our way through MB DH needed a beer. (I think he just wanted to show off his beer getting skills) Once he had his beer we made our way to the Luxor to check things out. It wasn’t bad – maybe it was the day that we were there but it just seemed to missing the vibe for me. This was a low gambling day, mostly sight seeing. The Luxor does have some cool things on the second level. I think it would be fun to do the video that they had flying over the strip – but I would have to be half cut to participate! We made our way over to Excalibur via the tram where we ran into a couple who said they just got engaged. I think said there is still time to get out… j/k We had to take some dragon pictures for my youngest daughter. After a short tour of the casino we headed back to the Luxor – after we finally found our way to the tram station. Which is in a different place than where you get off…. While we were waiting we made dinner plans to go to a nice Italian place off the strip. A couple beside us was “sucking face” which our friends found funny. It was all in the way they were doing it – must have been their first time.

Enjoyed a nice dinner and had my Mai Tai which I only seem to have with Emily. Boy was it strong and yummy. It was a wonderful evening with great conversation and food. By this time we were ready to get back to the strip and our check out our new room at the Barbary Coast. They dropped us off at the strip mall behind the BC so we could re-stock our room with liquor and made the walk through the Stage Door Casino to remind our selves why we don’t ever go there. (the fact that they call it a casino is pretty funny in the first place)

The view from our room (212) was great!
After a change in clothes we made our way through Bellagio to the tram to the Monte Carlo to get to the Boardwalk. The Bellagio was in the process of changing to a Chinese New Years display. So cool how big everything is and how fast things change in Vegas. This is DH’s least favorite walk over to the tram – claims it is shorter to walk to the Monte Carlo instead of taking the tram. I am inclined to agree with him – except that you miss all the people watching, the conservatory and the smell of the chocolate shop!

The main reason for our trek on this night was to make our way to the Boardwalk on their last full night of operation. And as soon as we got in – I knew I had to play Silver Strike. And sure enough I put in $5 and won!!! Well that was a sign! DH was busy playing and I thought I would try the machines near the front even though they had changed since my last visit – I’ve had good luck there. Well now it’s ‘The Price Is Right’. Which I never have any good luck at. Well wouldn’t you know it I’m up $10 so I decide to cash out. Big mistake – this is a hand pay machine. Well try to get a hand pay on the last night of it being open. Waited like half an hour. Well after that I check out BJ – all the open tables were 6/5 so forget it! This was one of those nights where I had great luck played a lot of quarter machines and did fairly well. Paid for our treats at the Deli that night. Oh yes the Deli… Well since it was the last night for it, DH wanted some pictures of the menu. So he takes our digital camera while I’m off checking out some machines and takes some pictures. The deli has a fair number of people there and he gets his shots. He is then waiting for his order when this security guard comes running over – in a stern voice asking who has a camera – “I saw a flash – who has the camera”.. The place was silent – not one person ratted DH out. Which he thought was cool. The conspiracy against the angry security guard. I’m surprised he could see a flash what with the flashing lights of the Deli. He sure took his job seriously – I wonder what he would do if someone ever got drunk and rowdy there…. We ended it off on a high note and left the Boardwalk… well at least I won at Silver Strike – my final memory!

From there we walked back, making our way through Paris. It was great to enjoy the smell of the coffee as we walked through. Using my French skills we were able to navigate through the casino to Bally’s. We stayed and played at Bally’s for a bit. Nothing too exciting either except that DH found his favorite slot games. These are the same ones he first found at 4 Queens that are “ergonomically” correct. They aren’t too bad! It seems they are making their way across to casino’s since we discovered them at Barbary Coast as well. Pretty soon it was time to return ‘home’. For old time sake we took the long walk out on the moving ped way and across in stead of using the pedestrian light on Flamingo.

I must say we have a great room! Loved it! Nice big plasma TV which we really only used for music. The only down fall that I can think of might be the noise from the strip. But really when you are tired in Vegas – you sleep – or pass out as the case may be. Of course in the spring/summer I do like to have a pool for morning recovery time.

Day 4 - Down and Dirty

Saturday January 7, 2006

Hotel: Flamingo
Breakfast: Main Street Station Brunch
Meals: Gold Spike – Shrimp cocktail!
Boardwalk – munchies


This is our downtown day. We really enjoy the downtown and our goal this trip was to have a look around before we got half corked. DH gave me a bit of time to sleep in and headed over to the TI to cash in a ticket he had from the previous night. I guess I had the mindset that sleeping was for back home and started getting ready. So when he got back I was ready to go. Went down to check out the cab line at the Flamingo which wasn’t too bad. DH, who hates lines, thought he would go over to the BC to check out the cab situation there. I ended up calling him as I got closer to the front of the line. So we were off – had a great cab driver (not one bad one here yet!). He told us of the story of the drunk girl and her boyfriend who he picked up from a strip club. Well needless to say she was just a little too drunk and they had to pull over a few times to let her get sick. Well every time she bent out the door her skirt went higher and higher. By the time they reached the hotel her skirt was more like a belt and he said the view wasn’t too pretty. He jumped out to tell her boyfriend to avoid some embarrassment when they arrived at the hotel. The boyfriend attempted to be discrete, however the drunk girl would have nothing of it and made a big scene about her boyfriend touching her butt and marched right through the hotel lobby showing everything she’s got! lol So when we arrived I asked the cabbie – my skirt isn’t way up is it? Too funny!



Brunch at Main Street Station was great! The best service and food, I love this place. Our server made sure we were well stocked with champagne (which isn’t as good as Bally’s – but it won’t stop me) and we were able to sit and relax and enjoy our food. Oh and I didn’t have to compete with porn stars for DH’s attention. After our lengthy breakfast we headed out to the casino floor played a little got ourselves another drink. I thought we were going to stay sober for this trip downtown, while in Rome… So after donating some money to the MSS we wandered over to the California for a little tour and then to the Freemont. We had never really checked that place out. Now from what I remember it was a dark place with really low ceilings. DH figures that if you wanted to hide some where this would be the perfect place. I guess I’ll know where to find him when he runs away to Vegas… From there DH wanted to see the difference between LaBayou and Mermaids. I really hate both these stinky joints. But since we were there I thought I’d get the famous deep fried Twinkies and Oreo’s… YUMMY! Well since I’ve had the Ho Dawg I thought I could eat these too – not. One bite was enough. But I did give it away to this nice couple. I hope they didn’t spend there next day cursing me with stomach troubles! From there we headed up to Fitzgerald’s this as a rule is our favorite place downtown. DH wanted to check out the balcony and did that. However there was no drink service. Now this was so out of character for the Fitz. Hmm so we went out and headed over to 4 Queens where the drink service was great. We discovered some new machines that are ergonomic??? What is this world coming to – healthy gambling! Crazy! But we had to try them and they were pretty good to us – let us play with a bit of pay and great drink service. I was getting hungry so we went over to the Gold Spike to settle an argument that had been on going since our last trip. DH was pretty loaded last time we were at the Gold Spike and was positive we ate at a different place… I hate to prove him wrong and all but…. So I showed him and said – remember that is where you fell off your chair. lol It was too funny. Order the jumbo shrimp and the combo shrimp and DH had the Meatball soup. Good little meal. From there we spent the rest of our time at the Las Vegas Club. I like this place more and more. We stayed here last August for one night and it was great. Played my fav slot game while DH went to find the Star Wars slot. He came back with the story of this hooker who had found this ‘older’ john who was using a walker. Well his eyesight must have been terrible cause she was not pretty. Ohhh I felt sorry for her. What a life. It was time to head back to the strip… I found us a cab at LV Club. This cabbie was great too. Mario was from Mexico and we had a great talk about the AVN convention.




Back to Flamingo and I told DH that I was just going across the street to watch the fountains. I love them and since it was already Saturday I wanted to make sure I got to see one show! Good think I did – this was about the only show I saw – other than from my room. DH joined me and we made our way to the Boardwalk to enjoy it before it too was gone.



After taking the long walk through Bellagio to catch the tram we made our way through the Monte Carlo with fond memories of our past stay. It was sad going to the Boardwalk knowing it was in it’s last days… A visit to the Deli resulted in some of our favorite foods. We then hung out for a bit then headed back and played at the Flamingo and BC. Let’s just say we weren’t ahead after this day. Time for bed – those windows give you an interesting view!!!

Here is one of DH's favorite quick meals...

Day 3 Porn Stars for Dinner

Friday January 6

Breakfast: Room Service (Fruit Bowl and Coffee) and Burger King
Dinner: Grand Lux (with all the Porn Stars)
Hotel: Flamingo

http://www.pastrywiz.com/dailyrecipes/images/439.jpg

Morning! Breakfast time! Well after yesterday’s yummy room service meal we decided to keep with just a fruit bowl and coffee and run down to Java Coast to pick up some muffins… Well they were all out of muffins so DH ran down to O’Shea’s and pick up Burger King breakfast – which was a little gross except for the mini-cinnamon buns – they were pretty good warm. Then DH got ready for the conference and headed out – leaving me with strict instructions to restock the room and pick up the gifts for the kids. So off I headed down to the ABC stores at the Aladdin and bought some souvies and beer for the room. It was a long walk back with such a heavy load. Crazy Canadian – anything for some good beer! I was back at the room at 11:50 am knowing I had 10 min before I was suppose to meet with Love2winalot…. So I thought I’d freshen up and then head down. Well give a girl sometime! Jeepers a girl can’t even be fashionably late!!! All of a sudden my cell phone rings and it’s guess who saying I’m waiting for you by the spinning wheel wearing my short shorts and player shirt. Hmmm should I really be meeting this guy from the internet? What am I getting myself into??? Well I thought, I’m a tough Canadian girl I can take this guy… No worries! I ride down the elevator with dread filling my head worried and preparing to put on my best face. Walking through the casino I spot him lurking around the table taking some kind of notes… Well I’m here now so let’s go meet him. I walk up to shake his hand and he grabs me… OK I’ve made some of this up. Sir Winalot is a nice guy for the most part – I still owe him a punch in the arm for his Oprah comment on the LVTalk board. We moved to Bugsy’s bar and had a beer. Which I needed to fight off the night before shakes! After some discussion we head over to Casino Royale to play Roulette where he would become the teacher and I the student. Hmmm interesting theory. So after a drunk Canadian put on a display at our table (NO not me!!!) and my husband came back from the conference we finished up even. Not bad for a couple of hours at the table. We watched a lot of people come and go from the table – mostly down so I consider that a win. Had Sir Win brought his sheet we would have played a little differently, but I still learned a lot about him. Especially what he normally does with his afternoon TV time!

DH and I thought we would play a slot before leaving CR and tried our luck with Dirty Harry… We sure didn’t feel lucky enough – oh well time to go back to the room to get pretty for dinner. That night was the Grand Lux at the Venetian – talk about an eye full there. Of course with the AVN awards and show going on the restaurant was filled up with the porn industry people. Very interesting. May I say it was difficult for my husband to concentrate. Not that I can blame him with half naked well endowed girls running around. Some I must say were very attractive but there were a few that aren’t in the business because of their looks. The meal was good – but I must say I am tired of eating in places that you feel like you are in a feed lot. (Sorry for the cattle reference, it’s a local thing). Main Street Station seems to carry way more atmosphere than any place I’ve eaten on the strip. I guess I’m not going to the right places yet!

After dinner we thought we would walk around and check out a few places down at this end. So off to the TI which we really enjoyed. Then to Mirage for a bit. Played a bit at both places and ended up about even. Found my Slotto game – yay! Caesar’s Palace was the killer of the night. Now I’m not sure what it is but DH has some bad karma when it comes to this place – so let’s just say shortly after entering the new shops it was time to back to the room. DH was in bed by 9:30… well Vegas time is too precious to be a sleep that early on a Friday! So I went back down to the casino and thought I would phone my French friend and see what he was up to. Funny he was just leaving the Hard Rock and heading over to see me in a cab. Great timing. We spent the rest of the evening talking and a little bit gambling. Had my first ride – on the monorail! Not bad… Pretty smooth. Now if they had a stop at the Wynn it would be so much better. Ended up at the Sahara – wow this place really hasn’t changed. My French friend tells me has a room on the third floor with a balcony that has a view of the garbage…. Nice! Oh and he is paying $250 a night… Sweet!!! I took the monorail back around 1 am played a bit at the Barbary Coast and enjoyed a Dirty Martini then it was off to bed for me.

Day 2 - Vegas Baby!

Thursday January 5

Hotel: Flamingo
Meals: Room Service
Margaretville

Well I woke up in Vegas – how much better could it be!! Ordered some room service for breakfast sent my husband off to the CES convention and headed down for some esthetic services – pause to remember the pain – she was actually good I might go back next trip! Checked out the wildlife habitat since those little penguins will be gone next trip. Followed that with a trip to the Forum for some shopping. Played the pinball machine and won $100 on a quarter slot (that was my third spin). WOW!!! Good start. I cash out and head back to the hotel.



Met up with my husband who was red-eyed and tired at the hotel. He decided to have a nap and I decided I wanted to go play. Dang it I had been in Vegas for 12 hours with out any drinks!! So I headed off to play some BJ. Stopped first at the Monopoly machines to play and called Red made plans to call her in an hour. Right after that SHF called! Wow this was cool. I was drinking and gambling and talking to my ‘internet’ friends. lol From there I moved on the $5 black jack table and found a great table with two retired teachers – they were sweet and helped me practice my strategy. Very patient – I guess that’s why there were teachers! I ended up $60 up when the table went cold and we all said bye, bye!

Well time to call Red… She is on her way to the strip so I quickly call DH who is at Casino Royale and told him I needed to get to the room quick and change. (didn’t want to disappoint her with my image…) So then we were off to Margaretville for a bite to eat and some pre-drinking food. After close to an hour we moved on to the “library”… Off to the first stop in our search – Tao to check out the cool bathroom. Well Red is great at walking in like she owns the place makes herself right at home and walks straight to the bathroom to check things out. Then we do a quick tour of the joint where she goes up to a table of two guys (one is on the phone) and she says to the other he must be from New York right? I loved it! So this is how things are done in Vegas – fun and sassy – just my style. So after this we head to La Scena in Venetian – now that was another great experience. No where to sit! So what are two thirsty girls in Vegas to do? Well Red finds a place to sit down which happens to be at a table where two young fellows happen to be sitting with two open chairs… Alright then I decide right there I’m going to follow her lead! After a drink the guys leave the table and we have it all to ourselves. We sat and enjoyed the dancing of this beautiful lady. What made her so great and beautiful? Well she was dancing like no one was looking and was the envy of every person there. Especially every suit who is too worried about what they look like getting down on the dance floor. It was wonderful – so of course we couldn’t just sit there! Off we went to do our thing on the dance floor with her and give her the official bow to her dance power! It was great and the band was cool. Ahhh heaven! Well we return to our seats and order another beverage (not cheap I must remind you) and look at the table of obvious CES goers who had a magazine from the AVN (lovingly referred to as the porn show) convention so I asked Red to have them pass it on over. It was too funny. They guys were more than willing to share and I of course did my part to have a good look – I even had to adjust the magazine sideways to have a good look…. Let’s just say after that a fellow from another table came over to feed me a line… As Red said – at least buy the girl a drink! We were out of there!

Over to Sephora where Red helped me find a new fragrance and do my makeup. How cool was that – here we are in Sephora (and it is true – she does sort of glaze over and shake as we enter the store) drinking Martini’s and acting like we own the place… Sweet! So here I am all dolled up and finished my Martini – hmmm I need another beverage! Off to Carnival Court – quiet crowd but of course that isn’t going to stop us! We had a great time enjoying the Flare bartenders. Course I was sitting beside some guy who claimed to own strip clubs in Montana – he was wearing this shirt that said I love Hot Mom’s….

Venue change – off we go again! This time over to Toby Keith’s - wooowww! It was great…. We had a great time dancing! I never knew Red was so talented, I had forgotten about line dancing! I have a lot to learn before May! The band was great – Red went to get a drink for us from the bar and some nice fellows from Texas bought them for us!!! How sweet – I could get use to this! Shortly after my French friend showed up… Interesting what happens when they play “I love this bar” well Red wouldn’t let me get away without taking part – so here I am leaning back and some young girl is standing over me in a short skirt pouring a shot into my mouth. Oh my!!!! We don’t do things like that back in Saskatchewan! Convinced my French friend to dance – taught him to two step in three easy steps – it was great fun! A few more drinks and a bit of dancing and we headed out. Met up with DH at the piano bar also at Harrah's. Had another drink and then we made our way back to our room trying our luck at a few slots. It was a great night and I was home in bed before 2 am!!! Such a good girl…..

Day 1 - Travel to Vegas....

January 4, 2005

Yesterday was a hard day. I took the kids to meet up with their Aunt, Uncle and Cousins. I’m excited about the trip but can hardly get over leaving them behind. Hannah was so sad the night before – it finally hit her that we’re leaving. I went to her room and she was crying saying I’m going to miss my Daddy! What a heart breaker! It is good for them to learn a bit of independence but it is sooo tough to watch. She made Daddy a little note to take with him saying how much she loves him. Sweet. I put a few in their bags to find later in the week. Jessica doesn’t seem to totally understand that we will be gone for a week – she is just excited to go to the farm and see her cousins and all the animals. Drove up to Davidson, the half way point between our two locations and met Rob’s sister and brother in law for lunch. The cousins all sat at one table and the grown ups had our own, when did they all grow up? After lunch all the kids went into the truck and after loading all their gear I gave them a big kiss and hug and jumped into the van before I burst into tears…. Better for them not to see their Mommy all upset. Do you ever get over saying good bye to your kids?

Got back to Regina went and picked up Rob from work. It was so strange to come home to an empty house. Even Rob missed the noise! So after a nervous night it was time for bed. Took me a bit to fall asleep and then I was out like a light – drained from the emotions earlier in the day. However Rob had a bit more difficulty falling asleep and maybe got three hours compared to my five. Morning came quickly as the alarm rang at 4:14 am – went to wake Rob who had finally fallen asleep on the couch. He sprang into action like a super hero – he was transforming into ‘Vegas Bobby’. “What is the real time?” he asked me. 4:15 I replied. Up he rose with the speed of The Flash he was ready, even had time for a cup of coffee before we left for the plane. It was 5:10 am when we left for the airport – the roads were blanketed with fog putting visibility at around 25 meters. He checked in and was ready to go through security so I was off to finish off some minor details at work… Best time to be there when everyone else is gone. Started watching the Airport Web Cam – very exciting. Didn’t see a thing! Silly camera is just set up at one gate…

Back at home I finished off my emails and tried to get some sleep – no luck with that, too many phone calls etc. What else does a girl do before a trip when she can’t sleep? I went shopping! Picked up a few last minute items for the trip. Called my friend Shelly, we went for lunch then she drove me to the airport. Arrived at the airport at 1:20pm – my flight didn’t leave until 3:10 pm for some reason I thought it left half an hour early. I was excited to have some time to write before the trip. A very helpful young man (man I’m getting old) helped me print my ticket and check my two bags. From there I went to the duty free shop – bought some gum, mints and Vodka Citron – thought we would give that a try this trip. The lady at duty free was a tough cookie but I warmed her up, feeling all happy I made my way to security…


Good Afternoon the nice young lady said, since you’re flying to the United States you’ve been selected for a random security check. GREAT! We will need to go through all you’re carry on luggage. Fine I thought…. So I make my way through the metal detector with a little beep – which checks out fine. Then head over to the lady who asks me to sit on the cold metal chair and remove my shoes. Which they scan as well as the bottoms of my feet. She then asks me if I would prefer to go into the back room for the upper torso pat down – I like the public quick and dirty so we do it there. Then the nice gent goes through my electronics (lap top, mp3 player, camera…) and the female officer goes through my bag. Am I ever glad that I came nice and early. Once I made it through security I had lots of time to sit and write. I love writing but rarely get time to do it.

Met up with my husband’s co-worker and were then called to the gate to board. Waited for duty free – she forgot mine – ahhhh yes just my luck. So they let me board and then brought my liquor just before take off. I had a great seat, right behind first class in a row all by myself. EXCELLENT…. The flight went smooth and landed in Minneapolis on time. The jet way wouldn’t level off so a mechanic had to be called; I think we waited on the plane for at least 20 minutes. Got off went through US Customs and then to the Split Rock for a bite to eat. Made some phone calls to see where everyone was at. My husband was in Vegas and had just finished his meal at Bally’s. SHF – where was he? Ignoring me? Hmmm – oh well left him a message he sounded pretty hot and has the same name of a guy I went to elementary school. Weird! I walked to the gate since my feet were sore and my backpack heavy. There was a huge group of people mixed with CES “geeks” and AVN “porn” types. Interesting mix. Rob’s co-worker Lisa noted that a few people were there from last year. We joked that given my past luck they would end up sitting beside me. Things worked out great – I had a window seat and was seated by a nice French guy from Montreal and an American living in Europe. We were pretty rowdy on the plane and I’m sure we pissed a few people off with our occasional laughter on the 3 hour flight. It was great!!! Arrival in Vegas went smooth – my luggage was always last and so Lisa checked out the taxi line a THREE HOUR wait! And this was at midnight. So the shuttle seemed like a better option with an hour wait. Off we went maybe took 20 min and we were on the shuttle. I get to the Flamingo and off to my room 26062. Rob who had arrived earlier was no where to be found – I called and called but he didn’t have his phone set to vibrate and couldn’t hear it over the casino noise. So I sat and waited outside the room watching a movie. I saw the line downstairs and didn’t want to go through that. Finally he came – got my message. Ushered me into the room with a beautiful view! SWEET!!!! Enjoyed the view for a bit – checked out Rob’s very red eyes and then headed out to find some food. Ended up at Burger King for some grub. So picture this: Rob is pretty juiced and the cashier is mentally challenged – their conversation was hilarious. I had to step in – too funny. Back to the room and off to sleep – ahhh Vegas. Oh and we learned not to close the blinds so we actually wake up in the morning!!!

T-4

So what do you do when you are 4 days away from going to Vegas??? Panic! That's right. I have a lot to fit into four days.. so I had better get busy at it! Not sure but Christmas some how messed me up and now here it is - am I Vegas worthy? Sure hope so. Will find out soon.

T-5

I'll state it hear and now - I am in no way, shape or form ready for Vegas. Only 5 days and I'll be there. Argh!!!

Here is my new fav Vegas site --- check it out!


http://www.whatbrianthinksaboutlasvegas.com/